Having recently picked up Spanish studies again (not that I have gotten very far before), I decided it’s time to join the #clearthelist monthly language goals link up hosted by Eurolinguiste and Lindsay Does Languages. This month will be short and sweet!

Spanish

Apart from working my way independently through a couple of book lessons last summer and doing some Duolingo now and then, I’m pretty much a rank beginner. Goals for this month are:

1. Squeeze in 8 Skype lessons before heading to Costa Rica (!) on March 30, including reviewing the material before and after

2. Complete enough Duolingo to keep up my streak on days I have internet access

3. Bring study and vocab notes on our March Break 9 day camping trip and study a bit each day

4. Listen to at least 4 Spanish podcasts

French

I am a much more advanced French speaker (better be, seeing as I teach it), but there’s always room for improvement. Focusing on Spanish though, so setting the bar low here.

Hello! Bonjour! Hola! And welcome to my new blog. Previously I blogged (sporadically) at kimplaysoutside.wordpress.com. It was primarily a journal of wilderness trips and still exists, should you ever feel the need to check it out.

However, with a goal of changing direction, Adventures in Life and Language has begun. Or perhaps it’s more accurate to say that I’m expanding, rather than changing, directions. You see, like many people (I think), I have a bit of a compulsion to define myself. Which sounds okay…until it turns more into label myself. Or stick myself in little boxes. To think that I need to be this OR that, when really, one can be both!

I found myself waffling between feeling that I should pursue, in work and pleasure, either a wilderness/outdoor education bent, or a language/culture bent.

Um, silly.

Thus, this blog is a meshing of the different facets that make me, me.

So here we go.

My name is Kim. I am an outdoor enthusiast, passionate about short term and long term wilderness adventures, from an afternoon ski to a multi week paddling trip.

I love the ocean, and am learning to scuba dive.

I also love learning and teaching languages. I speak English and French fluently, and am learning Spanish. In high school I studied French (well, that one started in Kindergarten), Spanish, and Russian. The highlight of my high school career was hands down a trip to Russia! I currently work as a French Immersion elementary teacher, and have also taught adult French classes.

I love to read a wide range of books. I love to knit. I love dogs. I love to drink tea.

The focus of this blog will be…not having a specific focus? I plan to continue sharing wilderness trip reports and related info. I’ll have posts about non-wilderness travel. I will share progress reports, resources, and tips related to my own Spanish journey. I’ll share French language resources and tips – both those I create and those created by others.

So I suppose this blog could end up appealing to a wide range of readers…or no one at all! Time will tell but, in the meantime, I’m glad you’re here.

Winter camping this past weekend. I read my Spanish notes in the tent.

Our dog. His name is Jack. And he is hungry (actually, this is rarely true, as he doesn’t particularly like eating, but things like matching pancake mix seem increasingly hilarious with each day spent camping).